San Diego French-American School

Posted: November 17, 2021

Posted: November 17, 2021

Posted: November 17, 2021

Posted: November 17, 2021

Posted: November 17, 2021

Posted: November 17, 2021

Posted: November 17, 2021

Posted: November 17, 2021

I've been a parent at the San Diego French-American School (SDFAS) since my daughter was a 2yo in preschool and she is now an 8th grader. (her younger brother has followed in her footsteps.)

We would be hard pressed to have made a better choice for our children. They are completely fluent (native speaker level) in French. Serendipity is why we wound up here, we were looking for a preschool, we stopped to check out the Montessori school because it is near our home. We just didn't feel like it was a good fit, but since we were parked right next to SDFAS, we decided, "let's check it out". We were very impressed by the director of the preschool and the French approach. Even so, when we enrolled we had no intention to stay past preschool, since neither of us speaks French. Long story short, we fell in love with the community, the teachers, and our children have thrived. Our closest family friends are fellow families from SDFAS. Living in Southern CA, and being frequent travelers to Mexico, we would've preferred a Spanish immersion school, but those options are limited and don't guarantee sibling admission. It turns out that due to French Ministry of Education requirements (which exceed US standards), they will both have 4 years of Spanish before they get to high school , so we got the Spanish we wanted anyway!

The other reviewers comments about tuition and the school being all about money are almost comical. Only a handful of private schools in San Diego charge less tuition, and none of them are language immersion schools; they are religiously affiliated schools, so they are subsidized by the church they are affiliated with. I am sorry those negative reviewers did not have the experience that we've had. My kids adore their teachers, the class sizes are much smaller, so they get differentiated learning, whether that's being given more advanced work to challenge them, or extra help because they are struggling with something. There is a strong emphasis on the arts, which is always the first thing that gets cut in public schools. The diversity of the student body is incredible. 17 different languages spoken at home, for example, my daughter's BFF's mother is Haitian and her father is Turkish.

Are there things about the school that could be better? Of course, the sports programs are limited (there is no gymnasium), many of the facilities are dated, but overall it's been a magical place for my kids. We wish it went through 12th grade.

Posted: July 5, 2021

Posted: July 5, 2021

Posted: July 5, 2021

Posted: July 5, 2021

Posted: July 5, 2021

Posted: July 5, 2021

We have 3 kids attending this school. Teachers and staff are amazing but that’s about it. The school is money driven and has gotten worse over the years. With the amount of tuition that they are charging you, you would expect that they would provide more in terms of service and academic development for the students, but it appears that it all goes toward giving the headmaster a pay raise. Don’t bother trying to have a meaningful discussion with the headmaster unless you are a big donor. Tuition goes up every year to compensate for the pay raise that headmaster gets every year, while performance, service and resources for the children continues to go down. You are much better off sending your kids to Francis Parker and hiring a private tutor to teach your kids French. I feel bad for the teachers and staff at this school as they are truly amazing, but unfortunately they are under the wings of a terrible headmaster lacking in leadership. They lost some amazing staff over the years because of the leadership. I pray they don’t lose staff like Babeth who is absolutely amazing.

Posted: June 4, 2021

Posted: June 4, 2021

Posted: June 4, 2021

Posted: June 4, 2021

Posted: June 4, 2021

Posted: June 4, 2021

Posted: June 4, 2021

Our 4 and 6 year old have attended to the SDFAS for the last 2 years. The school is AMAZING and has exceeded our expectations by far. The teachers are incredibly caring, positive and always professional. The kids are treated with respect and receive outstanding care and education from all the faculty and leadership team. The international environment and cultural diversity give to each class an incredible variety and richness. Our kids are SO HAPPY every day when we drop them off and don't want to leave at the end of the day! If you want your kids to enjoy their academic journey, I absolutely recommend the SDFAS. You can feel the wonderful positive energy from the moment you walk in. Go and visit, you'll see!

Posted: November 11, 2020

My children are under 5 and our experience has been wonderful so far. I chose SDFSA because my kids feel safe here, feel loved and cared for, they thrive in this program and happy they go there.

Posted: November 11, 2020

Posted: November 11, 2020

My children are in preschool and kindergarten and we absolutely love the teachers. Thoughtful,caring, engaging, loving. My children constantly tell me they love their teachers and that's what matters most.

Posted: November 11, 2020

Absolutely! And it starts at a young age where they teach them kindness, respect, being a good and kind person. My daughter always shares what they learn at school by providing examples, so it speaks for itself to me.

Posted: November 11, 2020

The school handled COVID really well and was able to safely re-open.

Posted: November 7, 2020

Posted: November 7, 2020

Posted: November 7, 2020

Posted: November 7, 2020

Posted: November 7, 2020

Bullying is tolerated as Head of School wishes it simply goes away instead of addressing it.

Posted: November 7, 2020

Posted: November 7, 2020

Shameful leadership. Fundraising is a priority over student safety.

Posted: October 28, 2020

Choosing SDFAS has been the best decision my husband and I have ever made! Our son is now in 6th grade (we started in kindergarten) and he is very well-rounded because of this school. He is happy! He has many friends and has enjoyed each school year.

Posted: October 28, 2020

The students have Directed Studies each day which allows them time to fully comprehend the current material, ask questions and begin (or even finish) their homework in that subject. It's an effective way to ensure that the children understand while still under the professional guidance of the teachers. When my son gets home, he simply finishes the assignments with confidence because he knows exactly what to do. This is a blessing because I don't speak French!

Posted: October 28, 2020

I love the teachers at SDFAS! They are French educated, with a certified teaching credential, and either a masters degree or doctorate degree. The French education system is quite rigorous which is why we chose this school. The teachers are kind with high expectations which is the perfect blend to develop a strong foundation for educational pride and excellence.

Posted: October 28, 2020

Every teacher and staff member has been trained in SEL and these values are woven into every part of the student's day. It has been wonderful to watch my son, his classmates and friends demonstrate respect and empathy toward others, and find resilience in themselves.

Posted: October 28, 2020

Change can be challenging for some people as noted in a few negative reviews about the school's leadership. After many years of service, the previous administrator retired in 2017 and Mark Rosenblum was appointed as the new Head of School. My family joined SDFAS in 2014 and experienced this change in leadership. Mark had a tough act to follow! However, in 3 short years he has exceeded all of my expectations. Under his leadership, the school now has a comprehensive SEL program (Social Emotional Learning) which required all the faculty and staff to undergo training and practice; a new technology lab was created with 3D printing, VR, coding, and robotics; the school acquired additional land and buildings adjacent to the campus (just as Covid-19 occured) and now the school has plenty of space for proper distancing and future growth.

Posted: October 28, 2020

Since kindergarten, my son has been given higher reading and math material because he naturally excels in those subjects. Conversely, one of his friends receives extra assistance in French, and math. I am impressed with the teachers and their ability to vary the levels for the students.

Posted: October 28, 2020

Personally, we have not experienced any bullying in our 7 years at SDFAS. However, I do know of someone who was subjected to bullying. When the child's mom (a friend of mine) called Mark, he took immediate action and she was quite satisfied.

Posted: September 4, 2020

Posted: September 4, 2020

Some amazing teachers and some really bad ones.

Posted: September 4, 2020

Posted: September 4, 2020

Posted: September 4, 2020

They don't have a psychologist or a certified special ed teacher. This is definitely not a school for kids with learning differences.

Posted: September 4, 2020

Posted: September 4, 2020

Preschool was great. It starts deteriorating in first grade. Too many teachers only stay for 1 or 2 years. A lot of the french teachers yell at the kids. Headmaster pretends he cares if you have an issue but will not do anything about it.

Posted: June 4, 2020

After 5 years here our student has great friends and has learned so much. When comparing with other friends at the beginning she seemed a bit "behind" because she is learning 2 languages but now she is right on par with peers in other schools and she is bilingual!!

Posted: June 4, 2020

It seems like teachers try to give students work at home that reinforces what they do in class and helps them be responsible outside the classroom. I'm happy with this.

Posted: June 4, 2020

Each and every teacher is amazing. I feel lucky every year!

Posted: June 4, 2020

The core values at school are lived out in all they do. They definitely want to help mold kids who will be awesome citizens.

Posted: June 4, 2020

Seemingly the leadership works hard to do what is best for the kids.

Posted: June 4, 2020

I am sure they do, but I don't have personal experience with learning differences. I do know, however, that there is lots of differentiation within each class.

Posted: June 4, 2020

I do not have any experience here. I know the school takes things seriously so I assume they would take bullying seriously too.

Posted: April 19, 2020

I have two kids at the school. The teachers have been wonderful and caring in supporting my kids' education. This school can be a challenge with learning two languages but it is important to go through the whole program. The kids are learning to read, write and speak in two languages so up until 3rd grade many kids at SDFAS will be behind their monolingual counterparts. I'm okay with that as for our family being bilingual is very important. As the kids pass 3rd grade they are on par with their monolingual peers and then also have French! It's worth the commitment and challenge to learn another language at SDFAS.

Posted: April 19, 2020

I am not a big believer in homework as much research says that it does not benefit younger kids. I would prefer no homework.

Posted: April 19, 2020

Teachers are wonderful and work hard to make work meaningful to every student.

Posted: April 19, 2020

Posted: April 19, 2020

Posted: April 19, 2020

Posted: April 19, 2020

Posted: April 15, 2020

Being self-employed, and greatly valuing the importance of education, my husband and I were willing to move anywhere in the US for a school that was the right fit for our family.

We found that fit at the San Diego French American School - and moved to San Diego to allow our son (and, more recently, daughter) to attend this great school. The school places importance on diversity, global citizenship and multilingualism. The staff and teachers are warm, friendly, and deploy intelligent and modern methodologies to help our kids thrive.

We are in our 3rd year at the school and are very satisfied with our experience. We love the curriculum and opportunities presented to our kids in the school, and plan to attend all the way to 8th grade.

Posted: April 15, 2020

Posted: April 15, 2020

Posted: April 15, 2020

Posted: April 15, 2020

Posted: April 15, 2020

Posted: April 15, 2020

Posted: March 25, 2020

I truly feel bad about this scathing review because of many of the wonderful teachers and staff, but unfortunately a school is much more than just that.
SDFAS will do anything for a buck, and give preferential treatment to children of large donors. They NEVER stop hounding you for money.
Safety is a huge issue. The incidents on the bus alone include a toddler being left in the parking lot, a young girl was sexually harassed, and SDFAS went through MAJOR bus safety issues. When the parents asked for change, the headmaster acted like he could not be bothered with it. One year a teacher hit a student. That same year, a child physically assaulted many of the children in my child’s class for a month while parents complained. SDFAS’s response was to put that child in another class without any warning to those parents, where he proceeded to do the same thing.
There is a lack of leadership at SDFAS. We know many families that left SDFAS not because of an incident that happened, but rather how the leadership handled those incidents. We have seen the headmaster not only be condescending and dismissive with us, but eve witnessed it towards other families. SDFAS is deteriorating under this leadership and families have been leaving left and right because of it.
Also, most recently because of the pandemic, SDFAS promised distance learning if you took your child out and did not deliver. The school academically is far behind other schools. Parents whose children transferred to another school warned me how far behind they were because of the curriculum. I recently went to orientation at my local public school and agreed.
Anyone reading these reviews should be aware that many of them are simply fake. Whenever there is a bad review posted about SDFAS, the school’s response is not to address the issues, but rather to solicit parents to write good reviews in order to bury the bad ones.

Posted: March 25, 2020

Posted: March 25, 2020

Posted: March 25, 2020

Posted: March 25, 2020

Posted: March 25, 2020

Posted: March 25, 2020

Posted: March 18, 2020

diversity is not a simple word in SDFAS... this is reality !

Posted: March 18, 2020

Posted: March 18, 2020

Fabulous School with involved & professional teachers... and happy & and world-ready students !

Posted: March 18, 2020

during CoronaVirus, online class room were organised in 2 days. Teachers are really involved, reactive and creative.

Posted: March 18, 2020

a SEL program is developed in order to put in place Responsive ClassRoom

Posted: March 18, 2020

a Five Year Plan Strategy is builded. And there is a good communication with parents.

Posted: March 3, 2020

Our children receive personal attention and parents are kept abreast of anything that could contribute to the success of your child. Communication is fantastic in-person and via email with regards to any homework or activities that the class is working on.

Posted: March 3, 2020

Posted: March 3, 2020

Since joining The San Diego French American School, we've seen positive changes implemented thanks to the teachers, administrators, and Head of School Mark Rosenblum. Mark promotes a sense of cohesive leadership that encompasses everyone at SDFAS. They've created a road-map to success, laying the foundation for our children to become successful global citizens.

Posted: March 3, 2020

Posted: March 3, 2020

We've never experienced any kind of bullying while at the San Diego French American School. Parents, teachers and administrators play a large part in ensuring that anything that might lead to bullying is addressed. There is a strong sense of community/family at SDFAS, and it's reflected every day in the friendships that are formed by parents and students alike while they congregate in the morning before class as well as the afternoon when school is over.

Posted: March 3, 2020

A sense of school community is one of the pivotal factors in choosing a school for one's children. Our decision in selecting the San Diego French-American School is reaffirmed every day by the warm embrace we receive from the school community, administrators, teachers, and parents alike!

Posted: March 3, 2020

Beginning in kindergarten, the teachers introduce "homework" gradually with writing activities and other educational yet fun assignments. You can see your children begin to understand and enjoy the concept of responsibility. Ample time is given to complete the tasks.

Posted: January 11, 2020

SDFAS is home to us. We found an inclusive diverse community that mirrors our family and adheres to our values. The faculty and staff are amazing. We witness everyday how caring and supportive they are. My children are happy, curious and engaged. They love the school and their classmates. I am especially thankful for the Fluency Transition Program for our oldest child. It was crucial to his French language acquisition He was not as fortunate as his younger siblings who organically learn French in full immersion in Preschool.

Posted: January 9, 2020

The school offers great opportunities for art and music discovery. My daughter is exposed the state of the art technology supporting her learning. The bilingual class projects follow the program, teachers work together to give kids a great experience. She has diverse friends from different socio-economic and global backgrounds. We love the community, it feels like home.

Posted: January 9, 2020

My daughter has an age appropriate amount of homework. This is helping her develop good study habits.

Posted: January 9, 2020

Definitely! They provide my daughter with experiences that are tailored to her individual needs. We are so fortunate to be able to attend this school as we are on both the French Government and SDFAS financial aid scholarship. It has given her opportunities that we could have not have given her independently. We are so thankful!

Posted: January 9, 2020

The newly implemented Social Emotional Learning Program teaches kids to be accountable for their actions, be able to identify their feelings and act appropriately. This created very compassionate, kind and open minded kids that we hope to raise!

Posted: January 9, 2020

I can see positive progress as the team grows. I know Mark Rosenblum to be attentive, warm and personable. He is close to the faculty and students. He is always at the gate welcoming families in the morning. He brings innovation to the school. The bilingual curriculum is always evolving. He celebrates the diversity that we share here at SDFAS.

Posted: January 9, 2020

The school has a strict anti-bullying no tolerance policy. My daughter feels safe and LOVES coming to school every day.

Posted: December 6, 2019

This school 100% only cares about students whose parents donate large sums of money. They will only cater to those people in every situation whether it be academic, bullying, even a part in the school shows. We have seen people having to leave the school because of bullying because the parents of the bully are big donors and are given preference. Every year we see the same kids get the lead rolls in the school plays across the grades and I am sure this upcoming winter show will be no different. They also give those kids more academic opportunities. It is one thing to reward parents who donate large amounts with better seats at a show or special events, but to give their children better opportunities is unethical and immoral and has not gone unnoticed by parents at all grade levels. This school will constantly hound you for money and even if you donate relatively large amounts $2000+ they will make you feel like you have not donated enough.
The teachers in general are good but are unfortunately overshadowed by the lack of good leadership at the top of the school. Priority is given to the lower grades because of the number of the students and the upper classes are overlooked. They are looking to develop those classes but it will take a long time to improve.
Drop off and pick up are quite chaotic despite the hard work of the staff directing traffic. It is dangerous to turn out of the school because of the curve creating a blind spot. Also the school needs much better parking lots.
Overall,it is not a terrible school but not necessarily worth the money you pay for it and think twice about sending your child if you are not willing to make a very large donation. I feel bad writing such a negative review because there are so many people who work at the school who are excellent, but the preferential treatment of children of large donors needs to be addressed asap or more and more people will leave the school. On a side note, the school solicits positive reviews from parents for this site so be aware that the results are not accurate.

Posted: November 20, 2019

Pedagogic team addresses learning differences by incorporating expert counselors on campus to help students (OT, speech therapy, etc.).

Posted: November 20, 2019

The administration takes this very seriously and addresses any problems first with the students, and then following up with the parents. They incorporated a Social Emotional Learning program and continuously seek channels to effectively deal with this issue.

Posted: November 20, 2019

Teachers are wonderful, students get a lot of personal attention and parents are kept in the loop with in-person meetings or timely e-mails.

Posted: November 20, 2019

Main focus of the school is to create independent and confident children. They do this by allowing the children to explore the world beyond the classroom, through various workshops within the school, arts, science and robotics labs, as well as day trips and overnight trips (local and abroad). Compassion, integrity and empathy are every day matters and are discussed both inside and outside the classrooms to the point where each student has these core values engraved in them.

Posted: November 20, 2019

Leadership team is very responsive to parent, student and teacher input. They constantly seek ways to improve the school and the community.

Posted: November 20, 2019

We have two children at SDFAS and could not be more pleased. They both started in the pre-K program and it is wonderful to watch them grow in this nurturing, yet highly stimulating and challenging environment. The school has a terrific curriculum, significant exposure to global cultures (very diverse student/parent body), a major emphasis upon international learning, a social and emotional learning program (studies show that professional success is more closely correlated with emotional IQ than intellectual IQ), small classes and great teachers. In a world that is becoming more international by the second, I believe that the education that SDFAS provides is about as close to ideal as you can get. We feel very fortunate to have found a school with an educational focus that aligns so strongly with our own.

Posted: November 20, 2019

The amount of homework is reasonable and it reinforces what the kids have already studied in class. After School Study Hall for elementary and middle school students enables them to complete their homework and get help from teachers, if need be. School also provides further after school homework help in smaller groups of students (offered both in English and French), which is highly beneficial, especially for multi-lingual families where a different language is spoken at home.

Posted: November 20, 2019

10 Stars! Choosing SDFAS was the absolute BEST parenting decision my husband and I have made.

Posted: November 20, 2019

The students are given an agenda (day planner) in first grade. They are taught to record and organize their homework assignments daily. Organization is important because the students are learning two languages and have homework in French and homework in English. After school, there is Study Hall (optional) that students can attend and complete their homework.

Posted: November 20, 2019

The teachers are amazing! The French teachers all have masters degrees (and some have doctorates) and received their teaching training and certification in France. Most speak 3 or more languages and have lived all over the world! I do not speak French, nor any other languages. My son has attended SDFAS for 5 years. We spent a month in France recently and every French person thought my son was a native! They were astonished to learn we are American. He speaks French with no American accent, demonstrates perfect grammar, high level vocabulary, and translates flawlessly for his monolingual mom!

Posted: November 20, 2019

Posted: November 20, 2019

This is a very exciting time to be part of the SDFAS family! We have always loved the administrators at our school and now it's getting better and better! We have a new leader (two years) who has energized the faculty and staff (and parents!) with thorough exploration, creation of a dynamic road map, and cohesity of implementation. I am so excited and so proud to be part of the SDFAS family.

Posted: November 20, 2019

I do not have first-hand knowledge about this.

Posted: November 20, 2019

I do not have first-hand knowledge about this.

Posted: November 20, 2019

Students learn to work together and help each other

Posted: November 20, 2019

Students speak a lot with teachers about bullying.

Posted: November 20, 2019

I love this school and my tree children too ! They became bilingual after two years and learned great values that society forgot.

Posted: November 20, 2019

Posted: November 20, 2019

Teachers have had several experiences abroad and they are accustomed to integrate students from all over the world. They are close to their students and very reactive in case of problems

Posted: November 20, 2019

I never seen aggressiveness at the school. I hear students talking to each with respect !

Posted: November 20, 2019

The Director is close to students and parents. He is always available. The staff is welcoming.

Posted: September 15, 2019

Already mentioned the explanation in the character section.

Posted: September 15, 2019

We may have gotten unlucky, few times over, but teachers were not effective. I believe it was due to the structure of the school partially. Past 3rd grade classrooms are “small” (-20kids per class in private school is not small!) but grade level total amount of students is what teachers are responsible for! So if a grade has 40 kids, each teacher -French and English has 40 kids to their name to teach and provide/check assignments for. So everything gets through the cracks, unless you have a kid with special learning needs.

Posted: September 15, 2019

Bullying processes and any character building approaches are non-existent at the school. When problems came up, admin ran around pacifying, unskillfully, all the affluent families. Social-emotional learning is non-existent, although the school began a process of learning about the importance of it the year we were leaving.

Posted: September 15, 2019

In any organization or institution it is very clear how effective the leadership team is by observing staff and processes. At this school there is very little cohesion and the atmosphere is reflective of leadership skills of the new director. It completely escapes my understanding why a French-American school would onboard a non-french director who has no experience in even studying in a french system. The school is led as a common core public school with 3/10 rating with some language instruction just to maintain the “french” part of the French-American school name.

Posted: September 15, 2019

The school is very helpful for kids with learning difficulties, but completely neglects kids on the opposite spectrum! If anything, I think this school would make a great special needs school for kids with learning difficulties. All the differentiation they talk about is not true, esp as you move up the grade level.

Posted: September 15, 2019

Very disappointing and underwhelming. We had such high hopes for it. The school has been around for over 30 years and is in a good neighborhood with lot’s of competition, but it doesn’t seem to learn how to progress. They are focused on money and ironically, the value you get for the price you pay is non-existent. I’d say with all the information we have now about the school, it would not even be a choice school if it was free. So much restructure needs to take place at this school before real changes can be visible in the instruction, that I think my child will be done with college by then.

Posted: September 15, 2019

The type of homework given to kids in excessive amounts is busy work from both curriculums. English hw was never checked by teacher and French was just rewriting words 10 times.

Posted: March 24, 2017

Posted: March 24, 2017

Si je devais décrire l'école de mes rêves elle ressemblerai de très près à SDFAS ... Ce qui m'a le plus impréssionné à notre arrivée, c'est l'ambiance positive qui y règne, tout est fait pour avancer, en prenant en compte les spécificités de chacun. Mon fils est, pour la première fois de sa vie, heureux d'aller à l'école ! Prêt à travailler ... Au delà de ses progrès académiques très significatifs, son développement personnel est réel, quoi de plus important ? Monsieur Jarlov, le directeur, a su créer autour de lui une équipe motivée, animée par une volontée farouche de bien faire et de faire réussir leurs élèves. THANK YOU !

Posted: March 24, 2017

Posted: March 24, 2017

Posted: March 24, 2017

Posted: March 24, 2017

Posted: March 15, 2017

Simply put, this school is wonderful. The teachers truly care about each student, and in the small class environment, are able to meet their needs. I was always impressed with the ability of the teachers to create so many levels within a class to support and challenge the students as appropriate. And this is all secondary to the fantastic experience and educational opportunity provided by the dual-language immersion program. My daughters became fluent French speakers, readers and writers, while living in an English-speaking home. The way that Math is taught in both languages really improved their Math skill set. The multicultural community is truly unique and very special. With this background, my girls were able to seamlessly transition to an American middle school, where they are excelling academically.

Posted: January 12, 2017

SDFAS es una excelente escuela. Mis hijos comenzaron en PK0 y actualmente están en 3 y 4 de primaria, así que tenemos ya 8 años en esta maravillosa escuela. Para mi familia, crecer en un ámbito internacional de respeto a diferentes culturas, religiones, ideas y nacionalidades es muy importante. SDFAS es probablemente la única escuela realmente internacional en San Diego. En casa hablamos español, en la escuela francés y en su vida diaria inglés. Hablan, escriben y leen muy bien los tres idiomas. Los salones de clases son pequeños (unos 15 alumnos), los maestros realmente están interesados por los niños y la comunidad es fantástica. Todas las mañanas entran felices a la escuela, no podría estar más contento.

Posted: January 12, 2017

Posted: January 12, 2017

Posted: January 12, 2017

Posted: January 12, 2017

Posted: January 12, 2017

Posted: January 12, 2017

The homework load is not too heavy. The teachers are accommodating and give reasonable expectations to students. However, it is my personal belief that homework is useless and I would like to see all homework gone as it happens in other schools/countries

Posted: November 17, 2016

Posted: November 17, 2016

The school is working to improve this aspect.

Posted: November 17, 2016

Posted: November 17, 2016

Posted: November 17, 2016

Posted: November 17, 2016

Posted: November 17, 2016

We love SDFAS! We enrolled our son in PK1 because we wanted him to experience a truly bilingual education. Our son graduated from 8th grade 2 years ago and is in now in 10th grade. The strict bilingual French and American curriculum at SDFAS has given him much more than the obvious advantage of being fluent in at least two languages. I came to that realization in 6th grade when I noticed the differences in the French and American mathematics and science curricula and how easily he was incorporating different techniques and concepts. We love the school because of the continuous exposure to diverse cultures and nationalities, to gifted, motivated and teachers and school personnel, sensitive to the individual needs of a child, yet rigorous enough to impart a sense of duty and dedication to learn. These 11 years were well spent in this school. His school mates still hang out together even though they are spread out in different high schools in San Diego and around the world. A truly enriching experience that we would recommend to families considering a dual language program.

Posted: October 11, 2016

Posted: October 11, 2016

Posted: October 11, 2016

Posted: October 11, 2016

Posted: October 11, 2016

SDFAS est une école qui est superbement multilingue, multi-culturelle et de haut niveau. Mes enfants peuvent d'hors et deja intégrer un cursus Americain ou Francais sans difficultés. De plus, cet établissement est riche non seulement dans sa pédagogie, ses activités, ses clubs, mais aussi de par sa communite solidaire et respectueuse (enfants, enseignants, parents). Les enfants sont heureux, attaches a leur école et épanouis dans leurs apprentissages. Les valeurs et la philosophie de citoyenneté sont omniprésentes dans l'education et dans la vie d'école. Je suis ravie.

Posted: September 11, 2016

We all know that Education is the key to success.
At SDFAS everybody including teachers, staff, board members and parents are involved to make your child success. Not only he/she will have a global education through two strong curriculums in both English and French at native levels but your child will also experience multiculturalism, arts, sports, history/geography, maths and sciences in a safe environment.
As a parent, I love that classes are small and teachers are very dedicated to their students and passionate about their work. I also enjoy being part of a vibrant, multicultural and so nice community you can’t find anywhere else in San Diego!

Posted: June 7, 2016

This school has a great program for education, sports and overall development that my kids have benefited greatly from since pre-school. Its so encouraging to see both my kids very excited and happy to be continuing with the school as they will be going into 6th grade after the summer. Happy kids is the greatest testimony to the school and the amazing teaching staff.

Posted: May 26, 2016

Posted: May 26, 2016

Posted: May 26, 2016

SDFAS develops high degree of honesty, integrity and fairness in its students because they respect every individual and understand cultural diversity.

Posted: May 26, 2016

Our kids started San Diego French American School (SDFAS) at pre-kindergarten and now completing second grade. Over the 4 years we have been very pleased with the overall education they have received in both English and French. They are both perfectly bilingual and excel in other areas, including, social skills, reading/writing, math, art, science, sports and global knowledge.

The school nurtures self-expression and provides necessary tools and guidance based on individual student’s development needs. The class sizes are small so every student gets the necessary assistance.

Our kids love the school, their teachers and their friends. They are exposed to many cultural backgrounds among their friends so they are respectful and sensitive to others. Some of the comments we hear from other visiting parents are that SDFAS kids are very welcoming and confident of themselves.

Among the parents there is a great sense of community and majority of them participate voluntarily in helping in many projects and fund raising.

The kids have many opportunities to share their talents in diverse events throughout the year, such as, theater, music, art show, sports events, etc. The kids also participate in international math and language competitions with great results.

We look forward to great global opportunities that our kids will have with high confidence after they graduate from SDFAS.

Posted: March 24, 2016

We love SDFAS! We started in Kindergarten and were warmly welcomed into the school community by a core group of families that had been here through preschool.

Not speaking French at home has made it really fun to hear our son speak. This isn't high school French- it's the real deal.

The school is excellent, the families and community around it are awesome, and hearing 4-5 different languages as parents drop off their kids changes the elementary school experience. It's been wonderful and we're excited about the years ahead! Join Us!

Posted: March 23, 2016

My children (preschool age) have both started school at San Diego French American school over the past 2 years. We love it!! My husband and I lived in France for a year in college and it was an amazing experience we wanted to share with our children. SDFAS is a truly international community. Not only do the kids learn french (without an accent), but they are also exposed to new friends and different viewpoints from all over the world. Another thing we love at the school - all the lesson plans are amazing and specific to different educational goals. The day is quite structured, but the lesson plans include a variety of activities (i.e. pre-reading, math, science experiments, gardening, art, cooking and obstacle courses). I cannot recommend this school highly enough!!!

Posted: March 21, 2016

SDFAS is an outstanding school. The classes are small, the teachers are great, and the school community very close. I love that my sons are learning in two languages and are exposed to a very international culture.
They have been at the school for 7 years, and it is wonderful to watch them grow in this nurturing, yet highly stimulating and challenging environment. In a world that is becoming more international by the second, I believe that the education that SDFAS provides is about as close to ideal as you can get.

Posted: March 21, 2016

Posted: March 21, 2016

Posted: March 21, 2016

Posted: January 4, 2016

We are extremely satisfied with SDFAS. Our two sons have been enrolled since PK and they have been offered a great education. Their French is at the same level any child their age has in France and their English is extremely strong. As an international family we find theses skills will help them succeed in any country or education system. Our children love their school.

Posted: August 6, 2015

San Diego French-American School ("SDFAS") is, by far, the best Pre-K-8 program in San Diego. I wanted a rigorous academic environment and meaningful cultural experience for my daughter, and I'm so fortunate to have found SDFAS. It is a dual-language immersion school that turns out smart, culturally sophisticated kids, with super strong academics, particularly in math and science, and a mastery of the French and English languages,

I have two older children who have gone through traditional private schools, and although they received a great education, it does not compare to what my younger child is learning and will continue to learn at SDFAS. When she graduates, she will be completely bilingual (she already can speak French beautifully and effortlessly without any exposure at home) and possess broad global knowledge, a strong work ethic and extraordinary academic discipline due to the intensity of completing a dual-language program. All this at a cost significantly less than other private schools in the area.

The magic of SDFAS is hard to pinpoint, but it must be the combination of the exceptional quality of teachers and the truly diverse cultural experience. The academic program is difficult, but the teachers help their students succeed by being knowledgable and passionate, yet tough and results-oriented. The class size is small and students receive considerable individualized attention. The frequent feedback about her progress, both academically and socially, is remarkable and goes way beyond what I expected. The school is extremely diverse, with a student body representing something like 35 different nationalities, so students are exposed to languages and experiences from all over the world.

I truly love SDFAS. I feel like I'm giving my daughter such a gift with bilingual education and she's truly becoming a "citizen of the world." I'm so excited about the possibilities that will be open for her after her experience at SDFAS. I can see already that she is developing into a hardworking, confident individual, after facing and overcoming the daily challenge of speaking in a language that she does not hear at home. She is also a culturally sensitive person, tolerant and respectful of others' differences. These are characteristics that are hard to teach, but are learned automatically at this very special school.

Posted: June 26, 2015

So bad French level!! My son stayed 2 years in that school, he was in 7th grade when he had test about 4th grade level!! Of course, he had always A, A+, sometimes A++ ??? What?? That's not what I am looking for. I don't want to pay a school who offers A to kids....They need to be challenged!! Next year, my son will enroll a public school and will follow Cned french program on saturdays mornings with OohLaLa French Language Tutoring :)

Posted: August 5, 2014

Our children have attended SDFAS for 6 and 2 years respectively. We are English-speaking parents and both children are bilingual French/English (with expected gaps for vocabulary that would not covered in school). Additionally, they are well ahead of their English-only speaking peers in math and science. All the teachers have been wonderful however, our eldest's 3rd grade French teacher (F.T.) and English teacher (E.P) are both exceptional teachers that I would highly recommend to any parent. The pre-school staff is very compassionate and committed to nurturing students. Any incidents that have arisen during our six years at SDFAS have been swiftly dealt with by the administration to our mutual satisfaction. Tuition may be pricey but the education that our children are receiving is priceless.

Posted: June 22, 2014

SDFAS is a great school. We are a French family living in San Diego and our teenager has just spend two wonderful years in the middle school. There are only 15 students per class and the teachers are very understandable, helpful in many ways and know so well our children. Since his first day at the SDFAS when he arrives in 6th Grade, our son enjoyed this school right away. Every student is welcoming the new students so easily, it was amazing to see how fast they all become friends. The school also organizes many after school activities that my son didn't know which to choose, several potlucks for Halloween, Christmas or other fun events. It's always a plesaure for the parents to meet the other parents. When you are new in the area, administrative people and parents are always here and ready to help you to make you feel good. This school is like a big family atmosphere where everbody is happy to be part of it. Now we are going back to France and our son is able to enter any school he wants to in France, even in International Section. So great experience, too bad it doesn't last!

Posted: May 6, 2014

This is my son's forth year here, he started in the two year old preschool. We love it. The classes are small, the teachers are great and the administration awesome. I love that my son is learning two languages and is exposed to a very international culture. His vocabulary in both languages is amazing. More important, he loves going to school every day!

Posted: February 27, 2014

We love the San Diego French American School (SDFAS)! I have two kids who came from a much-touted small charter school where they went from being far ahead in reading to way below their peer group. Then we came to SDFAS. The teachers and staff are superb! Friendly yet professional, they seem to gently exhort the children to do their very best work. The turnaround in my children is nothing short of stunning. Writing in cursive, in both English and French, and being eager to do homework! The math curriculum is the same as used in the French schools and is very intuitive and fun for my kids. Worth every cent!

Posted: January 21, 2014

As a former student of San Diego French American School I can say that I look back at my time with the fondest of memories to include the beautiful friendships I made, the diversity in my learning experiences, and the opportunities it opened up for me as a young adult. I attended SDFAS in 3rd grade, and then again from 6th - 8th grade but I did not realize the value of my time spent there until I graduated from the middle school program and went on to a larger school system. I immediately noticed differences in my level of knowledge, my sense of responsibility with my school work, my ability to think outside of the box and especially my problem solving skills when comparing to other students in my 9th grade classes. Now at 25, working as a director of marketing for a statewide pediatric home healthcare company in Texas, I still practice the work methods I was taught at SDFAS. I would love to be able to give my children future children the same opportunity I had by attending SDFAS as I know I would not be where I am today had I attended any other school in San Diego.

Posted: November 24, 2013

My kids have been in the SDFAS since preschool, one of them has graduated last year and is now at La Jolla High. Not only has it been a nurturing and highly academic environment but we also felt supported at every step (we are not french speakers). As a result of my children are very aware about other cultures, have inquisitive minds and are good kids. The classes are small so their relationships are very close and they feel like they matter (and are not only a number). My son had no problem transitioning to La Jolla High, was placed on some advance classes and has no problem getting A's. Best decision we made!!

Posted: October 21, 2013

My daughter went to the San Diego French American School for the 2nd half of 8th grade last year. This was one of the best experiences of her life, and had a major positive impact on her confidence and preparation for high school. She had been taking French from a tutor for several years, but we had no immersion school available in our home town. We had to temporarily move to San Diego for work, and thought this would be a great opportunity for her to gain greater expertise in French. The school was extremely accommodating, and all of the students and teachers worked very hard to make her feel welcome and to integrate her into the curriculum. They were very willing to work extra with her when needed, and were very clearly concerned about her specific needs and skills. It was truly a wonderful experience for our daughter, and we have only positive things to say about this school and the way in which it enhanced both her skills and her confidence in her own abilities.

Posted: October 13, 2013

We have three children that have attended SDFAS for 5 years. Our eldest graduated after attending for four years. He transitioned easily to a college prep private school in the area. His french and spanish levels were exceptional and required him to take a different language as he needed to have three years of a foreign language. His math level was exceptional as well and he easily moved into honors algebra II as a freshman. Our two younger children continue to grow academically at SDFAS. I agree with several other posts that the turn over of teachers especially in middle school is an issue with the program. The English program in middle school has been less than optimal for several years. The administration has been slow in responding to this issue. It is inevitable that as small schools grow they must suffer some growing pains. That being said we feel fortunate that our children are receiving a more global education than would be taught in a traditional public school in the US. They also have friends now from all over the world. Learning in a dual curriculum environment helps mold the brain differently than learning in a traditional educations system.

Posted: June 3, 2013

My child attended SDFAS for PK0 and PK1. We do not speak French at home, and she had no experience with French prior to her joining the two-year-old class. We were thrilled at the learning environment SDFAS provided her, and all of the teachers she had (leads and assistants) were outstanding. Becoming comfortable conversing in another language takes time - every child goes at their own pace. Our daughter picked up English words quite easily, so we guessed that a multi-lingual curriculum would be a good fit. She thrived at SDFAS in all areas and could speak in simple sentences by the second year. We especially liked the option of choosing between additional math and science preparation, which is all presented in a fun, interesting format, and adding Mandarin to her weekly plan. The student population is culturally diverse, and the school does a good job of bringing many different cultural traditions to life within the curriculum. School administrators are exceptionally qualified, responsive and forward-thinking, and an active parent community organizes special events, etc. If we hadn't moved, we would have kept our daughter at the school. It is part of San Diego that we miss most!

Posted: March 30, 2013

San Diego French American School is a Wonderful concept IF it were more organized & had facts to support the $your investing -prepares your child for college for $16k+/ year. The facility is very poor for children - the school looks like a trailer park. The preschool curriculum was amazing and great, however the preschool facility was poor. The tuition has increased every year - It is rumored they want their tuition to reach nearer $20k and that would be fine if the school was in the "league" of other schools in that market. There are Superior schools in the San Diego region both public & private with tuitions ><16k where they have proven track records with student performance and where they end up graduating college. This information is not given by SDFAS like other Top performing schools. If the school was managed more like the schools in that tuition league, had similar environment, sports teams then we would stay and pay. It is not worth the money to us , with other options.